For convenience, hygiene and the like, faucets have been fitted with one or more sensors (for example, infrared transmitter and receiver units) that can detect the presence of an object (for example, a hand or other body part) and can be used to activate the flow of water without direct physical contact with the faucet. Such “automatic” faucets are activated by placing an object in the vicinity of the outlet of the faucet spout, again without touching it directly. A sensor mounted within the spout detects the presence of the object and signals an electronic circuit to open a water valve controlling the flow of water to the spout. Automatic faucets of this type are common in public washroom facilities to reduce the transmission of germs and bacteria as well as to keep water from being wasted.
It is desirable that the automatic faucet, including the control module, be easily installed in the first instance, particularly since in public washrooms there are often banks of several sinks and faucets. It is also desirable for the electronic control module, including power supply, sensor and sensor wiring, to be readily serviceable (e.g., as much as possible providing above-deck access and replacement of the service components of the faucet with minimal disassembly). In a public setting, both ease of installation and serviceability considerations are contemplated in light of providing an aesthetic design (including, for example, the configuration of the spout and concealing the control features of the faucet) and making the faucet tamper resistant (e.g., preventing the spout from being compromised and the sensor disabled).
A common impediment to achieving an automatic faucet that satisfactorily combines the aforementioned design considerations is the requirement that the faucet maintains a sealed water path in communication with the building water supply. Typically, internal plumbing lines, either rigid or flexible, couple the outlet of the spout with the building water supply, such as by connection to an outlet side of the control valve at the underside of the sink deck. The below-deck connection can hamper serviceability.
To ease this problem, the faucet spouts can have a multi-part shell which can be disassembled from above the deck in order to access the plumbing lines. However, doing so creates seam lines that can detract from the appearance of the faucet. Even in single body spouts, the need to accommodate, the sometimes large or extra-length, plumbing lines can also impact the faucet aesthetics.
Furthermore, typical spout mounting arrangements in conventional automatic faucets have tamper resistant connections that make it difficult to remove the spout from its base. This not only can further hamper serviceability, it typically requires the spout and its base, in essence the entire faucet, to be replaced when replacement of just one of these components is required or desired. Thus, for example, it is generally not possible to update the look of the faucet by interchanging its existing spout with a spout of a new design having a different configuration.